Announcing the plan in the Scottish Parliament yesterday, Ms McAllan confirmed:

• A new commitment to invest up to £4.9bn over the next four years, delivering around 36,000 affordable homes by 2029-30 and providing a home for up to 24,000 children.
• Doubling investment in acquisitions this year to £80 million, which will help take between 600-800 children out of temporary accommodation.
• Implement Awaab’s Law from March 2026, starting with damp and mould, subject to parliamentary approval, to ensure landlords promptly address issues hazardous to tenants.
• Unlocking land for housing in rural areas by working with the Scottish National Investment Bank, landowners and public bodies
• A new Ministerial direction to planning authorities.

Ms McAllan said the plan was “a cornerstone in efforts to eradicate child poverty” and stressed the need for joint action from both the private and public sector.

The housing secretary added: “At the heart of my mission is ensuring children are not spending time in unsuitable accommodation or long periods in temporary accommodation; that the housing needs of vulnerable communities are met and that we create the optimum conditions for confidence and investment in Scotland’s housing sector.

“Our efforts so far since declaring a housing emergency have seen 2,700 families with children into a permanent home, up to December 2024. Our action plan will see tens of thousands more families have a place they can call home.

“Since I took up the role of cabinet secretary I have listened to calls from the sector for multi-year funding to give housebuilders more long-term certainty. Today I have committed to investing up to £4.9 billion in affordable homes over the next four years. This long-term certainty and increase in funding will support delivery of around 36,000 affordable homes and provide up to 24,000 children with a warm, safe home.

“We cannot tackle this emergency alone though and I need everyone from across the private and public sector to pull together and deliver this plan to ensure everyone in Scotland has access to a safe, warm and affordable home.”

Social Housing Sector

Social housing bodies broadly welcomed the multi-year funding certainty, but questioned whether the scale matches the need.

Yesterday, joint research published by Shelter Scotland, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) and CIH Scotland highlighted that 78,465 social and affordable homes are needed by 2031.

The SFHA welcomed the £4.9bn commitment but highlighted the research showing £8.2bn is required to deliver 15,000 homes per year.

Chief executive Sally Thomas said: “It is greatly welcome that the cabinet secretary has listened to SFHA and announced a four-year commitment for Scotland’s housing budget, and we now need further details on how much of this £4.9bn commitment is public money and will be for affordable rented homes.

“As SFHA’s research makes clear, Scotland must build over 15,000 social and affordable homes per year to meet housing need which will require at least £8.2bn in public funding over the next parliament.

“We trust further details of this funding commitment will be set out in the Scottish Budget.  In terms of immediate steps, removing the threat of rent controls from MMR homes is welcome. This has followed sustained pressure from SFHA as housing associations have repeatedly made clear that rent controls make these developments unviable.

“Increased funding for homeless prevention is another sensible measure and housing associations look forward to building on their proud record of tackling homelessness through delivering secure, warm and affordable homes.”

CIH Scotland echoed support for investment and the “fund to leave”, but called the package “a step in the right direction, not the full solution.”

National director Callum Chomczuk said: “The Housing Emergency Action Plan by the Scottish Government sets out a number of welcome priorities that CIH Scotland has called for in recent months. We delighted that there is a commitment to exclude mid-market rent homes from rent controls, giving social landlords assurance to keep developing; the fund to leave will help victims of domestic abuse leave an abusive home- the main cause of homelessness for women; and the additional £40m for acquisition - if new money- will support social landlord buy properties to move families and children out of temporary accommodation. These are all to be applauded.

“The headline announcement of £4.9bn investment over four years for social and affordable housing is a step in the right direction. The commitment to multi-year funding provides confidence to social landlords and developers, creating jobs, economic growth and providing homes for those who need them.

“However, as noted in the report published from CIH Scotland, Shelter Scotland and the SFHA, £8.2bn is needed over the next five years to build the 78,465 social and affordable homes Scotland needs by 2031. £4.9bn is welcome demonstration of intent, but it fails to meet Scotland’s social and affordable housing need and resolve the housing emergency.

 “We hope the Housing Emergency Action Plan sets the tone for a cross-party consensus on housing policy for Scotland, and that our MSPs build on the priorities set out by the Scottish Government today and prioritise the financing of more than 75,000 social and affordable homes in the next Parliament. This is required so that everyone in Scotland has a secure, affordable home.”

Shelter Scotland said the plan contained “much to welcome” but warned it falls short on social homebuilding, stressing the need for 15,693 new social homes annually.

Ahead of the statement, the charity called for the Scottish Government to do three main things to end Scotland’s housing emergency:

1. Build the social and affordable homes needed to stop homelessness rising - research published today shows that would take 15,693 homes a year, double this year’s plan for 8,000.
2. Increase funding to local councils to stop the unlawful refusal to accommodate people experiencing homelessness.
3. Prioritise lifting children out of unsuitable temporary accommodation.

Director Alison Watson said: “Màiri McAllan has been listening and there is much to welcome in (yesterday’s) statement about more money for councils, speeding up buying larger homes for families, protections for people experiencing domestic violence and a strong statement to reject racist calls to dilute the legal housing rights that protect us all, no matter where we have come from.

“However, the devil will be in the detail. There is no confirmation of new money to build the extra homes needed. There is no clarification about if the new money for buying homes is new money or money previously earmarked for new build. There was no mention as to whether the Scottish Government remain committed to their 110,000 affordable home target by 2032.

“We must face up to the fact that failing to deliver the 15,693 homes means that more people will be homeless. Our fear is that (yesterday’s) plan, while containing many good things, ultimately falls short of doing enough to stop homelessness rising and fixing the broken and biased housing system.”

Housebuilding and Investment

The private sector welcomed signs of a more supportive investment environment.

Homes for Scotland (HFS) praised the “all-tenure approach” and commitments to increase delivery by 10% annually, but called for clearer monitoring and support for SME builders.

Chief executive Jane Wood said: “We at Homes for Scotland have been clear in what we believe needs to happen. Given our extensive engagement and the data we have shared as an evidence base, neither ministers nor officials were in any doubt that only radical action was sufficient to turn the corner.

“It is clear that the cabinet secretary for housing has listened both to the challenges our members are facing as well as the solutions we have been promoting.

“An all-tenure approach, addressing planning concerns and supporting SME home builders are key measures which will take Scotland on the path out of a housing emergency.

“The proposed action and ambition to increase housing delivery across all tenures by at least 10 per cent each year over the first three years of the next Parliament, is a vital commitment that now necessitates that future policy and regulation must boost new housing delivery, rather than hinder it.

“Additional focus on SME home builders with actions to ensure the planning system is more proportionate and accelerate lending to them will support their critical role unlocking brownfield land and delivering rural homes. When nearly half of rural Scots view the lack of available housing as a key driver for people moving away from their local communities and work, these are critical actions.

“We now have to work with officials on the detail and delivery of the plan to ensure they achieve maximum impact.”

The Scottish Property Federation (SPF) welcomed exemptions for Build to Rent from rent controls, saying this would give “long-awaited certainty” and help boost supply.

SPF interim director Robin Blacklock said: “Today’s statement marks a positive and reassuring step for the industry, demonstrating that our concerns have been acknowledged. The exemptions for Mid-Market Rent and Build to Rent (BtR) offers some long-awaited certainty for those investing in new homes for rent, which are vital to expanding Scotland’s rental housing supply.  

“We also support the target to achieve a minimum 10% year-on-year increase in housing delivery across all tenures over the next three years and welcome the government’s ambition to secure £4.9bn investment into the delivery of new affordable homes, which recognises the important role that private investment can play.
These moves, combined with an ‘emergency-led’ approach to planning delivery will be critical to providing certainty and boosting Scotland’s housing supply. 

“Stage 3 of the Housing (Scotland) Bill, expected at the end of this month, will provide further clarity on other aspects of the legislation. It is crucial that an amended Bill receives cross-party support to effectively address Scotland’s housing emergency at last. 

“We remain committed to working collaboratively with the government and stakeholders to shape a pragmatic Housing Bill that promotes investment and development, ultimately increasing the supply of much-needed housing in Scotland.” 

Catherine Wood, development director at Lovell Strategic Land, added: “If we’re to truly tackle the housing crisis and significantly increase housing delivery in Scotland, we need to be thinking in terms of pace and scale. It feels like strategic land is still the missing piece of the puzzle – we urgently need to be allocating more land for development and bringing forward the right sites in the right places, sites which are deliverable and viable.

“With current local development plan timelines, spades are unlikely to be in the ground on many strategic land sites until the 2030s.  We need these schemes to come forward sooner.

“Government should encourage local authorities to support early applications for sites in strategic locations that will respond to local needs.

“Positive ministerial intervention should be encouraged, however, the decision to refer any development of over 10 homes on unallocated land – brownfield or greenfield – to ministers will surely give developers more uncertainty and delays which could result in delivery slowing even further.”

Propertymark said the plan failed to recognise the role of individual landlords, warning rent controls risk driving providers out of the private rental market.

Timothy Douglas, head of policy and campaigns, said: “Whilst a focus on tackling empty homes and more affordable housing as well as increasing standards for damp and mould are welcome, new social rented sector housing completions are down by 26% and the SNP Government continues to fail to recognise that the vast majority of private rented sector homes are provided by individual landlords. These are people who are being disincentivised to stay in the market or invest as housing providers because of burdensome legislation and damaging rent control measures.

“The cabinet secretary referenced the Housing Investment Taskforce recommendations for build to rent and mid-market exemptions to rent control. The Taskforce also recommended a review of property taxes which if reduced can make it more affordable for people to move up and down the housing ladder but also bring down the cost of renting as the tax burden is reduced for landlords.

“If the Scottish Government is serious about bringing down the cost of renting, then Scotland needs a taxation system that allows for housing mobility and where landlords can invest in improvements without having to significantly raise rents and pass costs on to tenants.”